Cassava has been identified as a major cash crop with many derivatives for growing Nigeria’s economy and expanding the gross domestic product if prioritised by the government.

The Managing Director/Executive Director of Agbeyewa Farms Limited affiliated with Cavista Holdings Limited, Mr Oskar Ayeleso, made this known on Thursday during Agbeyewa Day while speaking with newsmen at the 2024 Odu’a International Trade Fair ongoing at the Oyo State Trade Fair Complex EXPOYO, Sango, Ibadan, the state capital.

He said in spite of the profitability of cassava, it was excluded from the list of major cash crops for international promotion, drawn up by the United States Agency for International  Development.

Ayeleso who expressed shock that USAID had not given consideration to cassava as a valued crop for international promotion, stressed that it would be difficult to conquer the problem of hunger and unemployment without the country’s full commitment to agriculture.

He then emphasised that Agbeyewa Farms was working towards making Nigeria a food-secure economy.

Earlier, the executive director in his speech at the event, said the agricultural firm aligned with President Bola Tinubu’s mission to rejuvenate the nation’s economy and create jobs for the teeming youths.

Ayeleso also disclosed that Agbeyewa Farms had a projection of cultivating 10,000 hectares of cassava farmland in every local government of Ekiti State.